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  December 4, 2019 | International, Naval

  Navy awards $22.2B contract for nine Virginia-class submarines

  The General Dynamics subsidiary Electric Boat has been awarded a 10-year contract for design and construction of the vessels. By Christen McCurdy Dec. 3 (UPI) -- General Dynamics Electric Boat Corp. has been awarded a $22.2 billion contract modification to build nine Virginia-class submarines for the U.S. Navy. The deal covers the nine vessels of Block 5, eight of which contain the Virginia Payload Module, to be designed and built over the next decade, the Department of Defense announced on Monday. The contract also includes an option for spare materials and an additional submarine to include the VPM, which, if exercised, would push the total value of the deal over $24 billion. Virginia-class submarines are built to conduct anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface-ship warfare, strike warfare and special operations support as well as intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. To date, the Navy has 18 Virginia-class submarines, with James Geurts, assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, calling the VPM and other Block 5 design changes "a generational leap in submarine capability for the Navy." "This team developed a Block V multi-year contract which provides significant increases in lethality and performance for the fleet to support the National Defense Strategy while also ensuring we are maximizing the use of taxpayer dollars," Geurts said in a press release. "The multi-year contract also provides the stability needed in this critical industrial base to ensure we can continue to maintain our competitive advantage in undersea warfare while also providing a solid foundation for the Columbia program to build upon." This contract continues a teaming arrangement between Gorton, Conn.-based GDEB and Huntington Ingalls in Newport News. Under the modification, Block V submarines will incorporate improved acoustic design changes and increase Tomahawk strike capacity from 12 to 40 missiles per boat. "Our submarine force is fundamental to the power and reach of our integrated naval force," said acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas B. Modly. "Today's announcement affirms our commitment to the future strength of our nation, undersea and around the world." The first Block 5 Virginia-class submarine is expected for delivery to the Navy in fiscal year 202 https://www.upi.com/Defense-News/2019/12/03/Navy-awards-222B-contract-for-nine-Virginia-class-submarines/3281575400735/

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  March 12, 2019 | International, Naval

  Navy to Contract New Class of Unmanned Surface Vehicle by Year’s End

  By: Sam LaGrone The Navy is moving fast to acquire a new class of unmanned surface vehicles and hopes to award a contract for USV designs by the end of the year, USNI News has learned. In the next two months, the service is set to issue a request for proposals for a new class of medium USV, up to 50 meters long, according to an unclassified readout of the program reviewed by USNI News. A Wednesday USNI News request to Naval Sea Systems Command for additional details related to the competition was acknowledged but immediately returned. According to a notional list of requirements, the medium USV will function as a sensor and communications relay as part of a family of unmanned surface systems being developed by the service. The craft will be able to carry a payload equivalent to a 40-foot shipping container, will operate on its own for at least 60 days before needing to return to port, and be capable of refueling at sea. The craft will have to also be able to autonomously operate under the rules of the maritime road at a cruising speed of about 16 knots with a minimum range of about 4,500 nautical miles and operate via a government-provided communication relay system. The size of the MUSV – 12 to 50 meters – ranges from about the size of the service's 11-meter rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs) to the Navy's Cyclone-class patrol craft (PCs). It's unclear what the price per hull of the craft will be, but the modular focus of the Navy's USV vision would place the bulk of the costs in the modular payload rather than the hull itself. Full article: https://news.usni.org/2019/03/06/navy-contract-new-class-unmanned-surface-vehicle-years-end

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  January 30, 2019 | International, Land

  With shutdown over, Japan cleared to spend $2.15 billion on Aegis Ashore

  By: Aaron Mehta WASHINGTON — The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced Tuesday that Japan has been cleared to buy a pair of land-based Aegis ballistic missile defense systems, the first Foreign Military Sales announcement since the end of a government shutdown that stalled the FMS process. The sale, worth an estimated $2.15 billion, would bolster Japan's existing sea-based Aegis capabilities. The island nation is in the process of increasing its missile defense capabilities, both through additional Aegis buys and through the co-development of the SM-3 missile with the U.S. Although not specified in the DSCA announcement, a government official confirmed these two systems are for Japan's planned Aegis Ashore sites, which are expected to be operational by 2023. Included in the potential package: two Aegis weapon systems, two multimission signal processors, and two command-and-control processor refreshes, alongside radio navigation equipment, ordnance, identification friend or foe systems, and construction services for six vertical launch system launcher module enclosures. Tuesday's announcement is the first DSCA notification to be posted since Dec. 18, just days before the longest government shutdown in U.S. history began. Speaking to reporters last week, Andrea Thompson, the U.S. State Department official who oversees the FMS process, said the shutdown was slowing down the process of clearing sales requests from foreign customers — notable, as the Trump administration has made increasing weapon sales abroad a key part of both its foreign policy and economic growth strategy. “There will be a bit of a bump — a gap, if you will — just because we haven't had the engagement with [Capitol] Hill” normally seen in the process, Thompson said then. “We'll be able to make up some ground, but I am a realist. We have to work harder if we are going to have the numbers we had last year.” Japan has recently spent heavily on American defense items. In September, the nation was cleared to spend $3.14 billion on nine E2-D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft, and in October it agreed to pay more than half a billion dollars for SM-3 missiles. In the recently released Missile Defense Review, the U.S. Department of Defense identified that working with partners in the Pacific — notably Japan and South Korea — is the “cornerstone” of American security in the region. “Japan is one of our strongest missile defense partners, and works together with the United States to strengthen cooperative missile defenses against regional missile threats,” the review states. “Going forward, DoD will work with allies and partners to prioritize these types of missile defense integration opportunities that contribute to more effective protection of the United States, its allies and deployed forces.” DSCA announcements do not mean sales are final. The announcement serves as notification to Congress about the potential sale, which can be vetoed by the Senate; once cleared, negotiations between the customer and contractor can lead to changed quantities or dollar figures from the original announcement. https://www.defensenews.com/global/asia-pacific/2019/01/29/with-shutdown-over-japan-cleared-to-spend-215-billion-on-aegis-ashore